Machpelah or resting place for the dead.



Ui'\i ;irED sTATEs PATENT .oEEioE LEON Banc, F

NEW Yo-RK, N. Y.

`mamariaLaia QR RESTING PLACE non THE DEAD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 4, ieee.

' lippiicaiiun mee August 19, 190s. -lseriai No. 449,2col

T12-all 'whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that IVLEON Banc, a..citizen *of the vUnited 'States ,ofAmerica, residing at New York, in theborough of Manhattan, countyandState of lNew' York, have'v invented' certain new land usefulImprovevmentsin Machpelahs or Resting Places for the Dead, of` which thefollowing is a vspeciic'ation.

'This invention relates to an improved-` machpelah or restingiplace 'forthe dead. .Heretofore dead vbodies were either buried in gravesor inwalls or mausoleunis. This Inodel of burialwas, however, connectedl withmany objectionable features, partly sanitary, and partly inconvenient'on acl count of the increasing population.

The object ofthis invention is to supply a restingplace or macl'ipelahfor the dead, in'

pertinents arranged in tiers, one above the other, said compartmentsbeing closed at the rear-ends and iiiclosed at the front-ends by ahermetically-sealed cover.v Ventilating channels are arranged in theupright walls between the individual compartments and in the bottom ofthe structure, Jche partition walls being made double so as to form theupright Ventilating channels.

The invention consist-s Iurther of certain details of construction, andmore especiallyrelating to the construction of the sealed cover for the..oinpai-tiiieiits, as will be fully described hereinafter and finallypointedout in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l represents a perspective view ofmy iiiiproved inachpelah or .resting-place for the dead.` Figs.2 and 3are respectively a horizontal section and a vertical sectionrespectively on lines 2, 2, and 3, 3, Fig. 1, Fig. A4: is a ldetailhorizontalsection of the sealing lend of one of the compartments, andFig. 5 is a horizontal section, drawn on a largerhscale, of a mpdifiedconstruction of the sealing end of one of the compartments. Similarletters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the severalligures. t

Referring to the drawings, (L represents one of the conipartiiieiits,ofvmy improved niachpelah or restingplace vt'or the dead.. Themachpelahiscomposed of a plurality of coi'npartments, whichC arearranged in hoi-if ranged one above the other.; vEach compart- 'fincoi-itai'ning 'a corpse; The rear-end 0 1" each compartment is closed,the rear-end of each compartmentbeing separated byvertical. transversepartition-walls a* from aliother set of compartments which are ar.-i'anged at the back of the front or first set. "lhe compartments areconstructed' of a numfz.: as@ which are made of concrete and which arebuilt. up in connection with suitable molds, thel ijerticalpartition-walls'a.J being iilaiiiig-clninnels ai Riny number of sets oicompartments may be arranged in groups sidewise of and above each other.the whole structure being iiiclo'sed -by a siiitableshed or otherstructure.l onleflP unprotected. as delsired.-

The compartments are closed at their rearai'e occupied by a coiiiny'containing a dead body. A tier the coti'in is placed on theconipartiiielit a hernielically-closiiig cover l is inserted into thefrontend said cover consisting of three parts, aboard or plate (Il.which if; placed against shouldersI (l2 at the interior ol the.compartment, a block fl of concrete which is cast in such a manner totill up grooves Z4 at the sides and top of the 'liront-end l,of thecompz'ii'tment so as t0 form a tongue-alid-groove jointl u'iththe same,and a stone or other slab di' on which the name of the person in "thecompartment, dates of birth and death. and other data are inscribed.l

cement block (ZG ot' the cover is4 castin a 1iinnbei' oi grooves (ll.Lfilso,the upright walls a* are not provided with Ventilating channels.

ln -the bottoni of the groups of compartmentsare arranged parallelVentilatingcliannels (ZX which connect with the vertical channelsarranged in the double partitionwalls a of the structure.

ticaland bottoni channels. Likewise any through the porous upright wallsof the zontal tiers', any number of tiers being airpreferably madedouble, so as to foi-in 'venends and open at their front-ends until theyl'ii the'construction.shown in fig. '5, the- The bottoni chan nels areslightly inclined so as to permit any, rain water to be drawn ottthrough the vergases of decomposition which may permeate nient is madelarge enough to receive a coiti bei' of horizontal and verticalpartition walls los - 'the channels, Which extend 'substantially ineticsealing of the same.

throughout the length of the compartments. The individual bottomVentilating channels (ZX extend, from the front to the rear of thestructure below the lowermost'compartments and are alined with therespective vertical channels With which they communicate, having theirfront-ends open to the atmosphere' at the base of the structure, I

` After a certain period ofk time additional 'compartments are builtupon the lower groups ofcompartments, and in this case the new groupsare separated byy a. horizontal partition-Wall provided withVentilating-channels in the same manner as the bottom and verticalpartition-Wallsv of the lower groups;

of `the lower groups are entirely filled with concrete so as to increasethe strength of the lower groups and produce the absolute her- Beforethe compartments are occupied by dead bodies they can be closedv by apane of Wired-glass which canV be readily removed 'when the compartmentis to be used for a dead body, and which preventsl the ingress of dustin the compartment. Y

The structure described forms 'a hermetically-sealed machpelah orresting-place lfor the dead, in which a large number of bodies can beeliiciently stored and`preserved for an almost indefinite length oftime, wit-hout' contamination ofl the ground or danger to health.Instead of burying the bodies in the ground, they are stored in astructure above the ground which is always ready for inspection andimmediate burial, and in which each compartment can be quickly sealedafter the coliin is placed therein, and still. ventilated tosome extent.It forms a resting-place for the dead similar to the cave or rock-gravesof the ancient peoples Before they are built the` double partition-wallsand bottom channelsv as mentioned in the Old Testament, and permits thestorage of a larO'e number of bodies in a comparatively smalI space,which from a sanitary point of view is entirely 'innocir ous andunobjectionable.

Having `thus described any. invention, I claim as new and desire tofsecure by Letters Patent: i

l. In a burial structure such as described, the combim tion of aplurality of compartments formed by horizontal Walls arranged in tiers,and imperforate porous partition -Walls entirely closing thecompartments at lthe sides and each having a channel therein, saidchannels collecting the gases which pass v'through the porous side-Wallsof the compartments and being open to the atmosphere at their upperends.

2. In a. burial structure such as described, tie combination` of aplurality of upright p rous partition-walls having vertical chan; nelsor passages therein open to the atmosphere at the top of the structure,horizontal walls supported by said vertical Walls and forming inconjunction therewith a plurality of burial compartments arranged intiers, and separate horizontal Ventilating channels in the base of thestructure alined and communicating with the respective channels orpassages of said partition-Walls and having their ends open to theatmosphere at the front of the structure;

3. In a burial structure such as described, .the combination' otl aplurality of compartments formed by horizontal Walls arranged in tiers,and vertical porous partition-walls entirely lclosing the compartmentsat the sides and each having a channel therein, said channels collectingthe gases which pass through the porous side-walls of the4 compartmentsand being open to the atmosphere at their upper ends, and separatehorizontal vcntilating channels in the base of the structurecommunicating with the` first-named channels and having their ends'opento the atmosphere at the front of the structure.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have signedmy name in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEON BARG. Vitnesses PAUL Gonrnr,

HENRY J. SUHRBIER.

